(Plate XLI.)

Family

Plum.

Colour

White.

Odour

Scentless.

Range

New England south to Georgia and west to Colorado.

Time of Bloom

April, May.

Flowers: clustered in short, close racemes. Calyx: tubular; bell-shaped; five-lobed. Corolla: of five tiny petals. Stamens: numerous. Pistil: one. Fruit: a beautiful, bright red berry which turns to dark crimson as the season advances. The stone and kernel of the fruit have the flavour of, and contain prussic acid. Leaves: alternate; oval; pointed; sharply serrate. A tall shrub, or small tree with dark, greyish bark.

The beautiful drooping bunches of fruit that ripen in July or August are even more attractive by the side of some running stream than the choke-cherry's closely packed racemes of dainty bloom. One should not, however, be tempted to test their beauty by tasting, as the flavour is most astringent.